The Week of 9/23-9/27

• Mon 9/23:  Check off Statistics Packet in class.  Questions for short test tomorrow?  Work on Chemistry Review.  Use chapters 2+3 of old text books.
• Tues 9/24:  Statistics, Uncertainty, and Significant Figures Short Test.  When finished, continue working on chemistry review.  Special properties of water.  Finish Chemistry Review for Thursday if not already finished.
• Thurs 9/26:   Turn in Chemistry Review if not already.  Amazing Properties of Water Lab.  When finished, turn in the hand-out and pick up the "Dictionary of Organic Molecules".  Begin highlighting the groups specified.  Start reading Chapter 4.

Statistics and Uncertainty Short Test on Tuesday 9/24

What will be on this short test?  Use your class worksheets to review.

• Calculating average, standard deviation, and t-test using a TI-84 or equivalent calculator.  Thus, you need to bring one of these calculators and know how to use it to get the above information.
• Be able to explain the meaning and ranges for standard deviation.
• Interpretation of meaning of t-test (you will be given chart of Critical Values)
• Estimation of total number of organisms in a grid given information about numbers in a number of quadrats (like what you did in brine shrimp lab).  Show your work!
• Significant Figures:  counting them and computing with them.  Remember that the rules differ for multiplying/dividing and adding/subtracting!
• Be able to calculate the mean and uncertainty given a set of data.
• Adding/Subtracting and Multiplying/Dividing with uncertainty

Beginning of the Year Lessons

Sorry for the delay in getting this updated!  Please look here weekly for updates on what we are doing in class, class hand-outs, etc.

The school year so far and the coming week:

• Wed 9/4:  Introduction to course.  Demonstrate Early Work.  Hand out Safety Contract and Academic Honesty Contract.  Please get both signed by yourself and a parent/guardian by next Tuesday, 9/10.  Bring TI-84 Calculator or equivalent next week.
• Thurs 9/5:  Go over class expectations.  Count brine shrimp cysts using dissecting microscopes, hydrate in 3% salt water, and then let sit out over the week-end.  Complete first half of Brine Shrimp Count worksheet showing work.  Hand out IB Biology Survival Guide.
• Mon 9/9:  Get out microscopes and inspect your brine shrimp.  What type of activity do you see?  Any unhatched cysts?  Any hatched but dead shrimp?   Do TI-84 Activity hand-out. 
• Tues 9/10:  Safety and Academic Honesty Contracts due.  Explain meaning of t-test.  Finish TI-84 Activity hand-out and turn in.  Count live brine shrimp, using 5 independent 1 mL samples.  Estimate number of live shrimp and calculate % hatched and survived.  Hand out planning sheet for Brine Shrimp Inquiry.  In your groups, determine what you will test and how you will do it.   Do some trials with the brine shrimp to help figure out your direction.  Bring completed planning sheet on Thursday.  Start reading Chapter 1 (1.1 and 1.2) in your text book.
• Thur 9/12:  Carry out Brine Shrimp Investigation.  Explain expectations for lab conclusion (see previous post).   Brine Shrimp Lab due Tuesday 9/17.  Hand-out significant figures hand-out and explain how to count significant figures.
• Mon 9/16:  Computing with significant figures.  Propagating uncertainty.  Complete both sides of significant figures hand-out for tomorrow.
• Tues 9/17: Turn in Brine Shrimp Lab.   Hand-out LoggerPro tips.  Go to library to create 2 graphs using LoggerPro (using the data tables on the back of the sig. figs. sheet).   Staple graphs to completed sig. figs. hand-out and turn in today or Thursday.   Return to class, hand out Statistics Packet and work on it.  Make sure that you show your work!  Packet is due by the end of class on Thursday.  Finish reading Chapter 1 in textbook.
• Thurs 9/19:  Turn in sig. figs hand-out and graphs is not already.  Finish statistics packet.  Turn in by the end of class.  Statistics Quiz next Tuesday 9/24.   Requirements for life.   Start molecules of life.

Conclusion for Brine Shrimp

The Brine Shrimp Lab is due Tuesday, 9/17/13.  You should include your completed Brine Shrimp Count hand-out (showing work where applicable.  Skip the last question about calculating the uncertainty of the percent hatching), the completed Planning Sheet (updated after doing the lab), and a neatly-written or typed conclusion using the requirements below.

• ›Refer to focused question (restate it) and refer to your results
• ›Use data to support your results (also using comparative words like “more”, “less”, “increase”, etc)
• ›Attempt to explain your results using scientific language and knowledge
• ›Describe at least 3 sources of uncertainty and/or limitations being specific (don’t use the term “human error”)
• Suggest at least 3 realistic and specific improvements to the investigation (matched up to uncertainty above).

This should take approximately 3-4 paragraphs:  1-2 for stating and explaining the results, 1 for describing uncertainty/limitations, and 1 for suggesting improvements.

Welcome to the 2013-2014 School Year!

This will be your class website for the next 2 years. You can come here to find out what we are doing in class, get homework assignments, and get links to class documents. If you don't find what you are looking for, you can e-mail me with questions at mkenny@pps.net. I am looking forward to a fantastic school year!

4/29-5/10

We are moving into IB Testing this week.   It is expected that you will come to class if you are not testing.  We will do something Biology-related and you will get participation points for attending that day.  Students who are IB Testing will be excused from the daily activity.

Mon 4/29:  Hand back Paper 2 Part B practice and go over.  Turn in Take Home Test if not already.
Wed 5/1:  Review Jeopardy for IB Test.
Fri 5/3:  IB English for many students.  Life Video for the rest of the class.
Mon 5/6:  Most students here.  Go over Paper 3 Concepts.
Wed 5/8:   Pollution Game.
Fri 5/10:  Life Video on Plants.

4/22-4/26 (Practice IB Tests this week!)

• This week we are getting ready for the IB exam!  Everyone will participate in these practice tests, even students who are not taking the test.  We are doing Papers 1 and 2 during class and you have an extended form of a Paper 3 as a take-home test (see documents section if you don't have it).  Turn it in through turnitin.com by Friday, 4/26.  You also have a data-based question that you need to turn in as a hard-copy by Friday.  
• Mon 4/22:  Practice Test of Paper 1.  This is 40 multiple choice questions.  You will get 20 points just for taking it (but do your best!  no 20 simply for filling in bubbles.  Put some thought into it) and then up to 5 more for doing well.
• Wed 4/24:  First part of Paper 2.  This is a long data-based question and then some random questions about the higher level syllabus.
• Fri 4/26:  Second part of Paper 2.  There are 4 sets of 3 essay-type questions and you need to answer 2 complete sets.  Answer as thoroughly as you can!   Your practice test for Paper 3 (evolution and Neurobiology and Behavior) is due by today!  Turn in essay part through turnitin.com and the data-based question as a hard-copy.